It required a complete stripping and repaint plus numerous custom parts. The wheelbase was shortened, and the steering wheel and column were moved to the right. They still operate as the front wheels turn. The dash was reversed as well.

New round gas tanks were mastered as well as the external air cleaner and its plumbing. Polishing with jeweler’s rouge made the bumper appear as chromed, while the running boards, battery box doors and air cleaner straps were foiled. Hood grilles were filled and smoothed, and the left side was cut into two to accommodate the air ducts. The hood side emblems are photos of the full-sized pieces glued on.

“This build took me 18 months, because I spent a lot of time staring at the parts, figuring out what to do and how to do it,” Clark said. “Philip would call me occasionally to check on the progress, or lack thereof. When the phone would ring on a Friday evening, I knew who it was. I needed that to keep me going.”